Johannesburg - A Wits University graduate has launched a home-grown first-of-its kind mobile application that provides same-day or next-day deliveries of essential and over-the-counter medication.
PharmaGo, a new mobile app, is the brainchild of BSc construction graduate Raees Carim, 22.
Carim told The Star on Thursday that the seed for the app was sown in 2019 when an immune-compromised close relative was unable to access essential medicine after traditional pharmacy closing hours.
“After my relative was inconvenienced by the pharmacy industry I realised that there are a lot more people who are having the same issue, and that’s where it started.”
Carim said that the free app facilitated the delivery of prescriptions and over-the-counter medication in as little as an hour, depending on the distance between the nearest participating network pharmacy and customer.
He added that PharmaGo allowed customers to upload their prescriptions on the app and they went directly to a pharmacy panel that was only accessible to the pharmacist fulfilling the prescription.
“This process ensures both information security and discretion. This direct-to-pharmacy prescription upload process is exclusive to PharmaGo, and payments for the products are processed via credit or debit card, and direct medical aid submission,” he said.
As a construction graduate, Carim said it was challenging to develop the app because he did not have experience working with the pharmaceutical industry or in software development.
He said the app’s nationwide network of pharmacies included 86 local and independent pharmacies, with fee-free deliveries within a radius of 20-50km, depending on the location.
“The local pharmacies make it easier because it’s normally a neighbourhood pharmacy and it allows for faster delivery times, and we want people to support their local pharmacies during these difficult Covid-19 times,” Carim said.
The PharmaGo nationwide facility also allows next-day deliveries for deliveries that are outside the network’s reach.
The delivery of the medications is facilitated by PharmaGo, where delivery drivers are deployed to the pharmacies.
The Star